Ark. 911 operator resigns after dispatching delay

An Arkansas 911 operator has resigned months after the death of a woman who called for help when she and her son were trapped inside a vehicle in a pond, authorities said Thursday.

Associated Press

LITTLE ROCK (AP) — An Arkansas 911 operator has resigned months after the death of a woman who called for help when she and her son were trapped inside a vehicle in a pond, authorities said Thursday.

The 911 operator's resignation last week follows Jinglei Yi's death on Jan. 14. Yi, 39, died after she called 911 because her vehicle hit a patch of ice and ended up in a Little Rock pond.

Little Rock police said in a statement Thursday that the city 911 operator resigned on June 14. Police spokeswoman Sgt. Cassandra Davis would not immediately release a copy of the operator's resignation letter, citing the operator's right to seek an opinion from the attorney general.

Police have said a county dispatcher transferred Yi's call to the city 911 operator, who spoke with Yi briefly before hanging up and contacting an ambulance service.

An ambulance was dispatched to the pond a few minutes later, but police officers and firefighters weren't dispatched until about a half-hour later — after the ambulance service called to verify that they were en route.

Yi died that day, and her son was in critical condition after the incident. His current condition isn't clear. Davis said she's not aware of the son's medical condition, and a phone number for Yi's family couldn't immediately be located.

The 911 operator has not been charged with any wrongdoing in the case. A Pulaski County coroner's report says Yi drowned and that her death was an accident.

The head of the city police and fire departments' communications branch has said the operator did not enter Yi's call into a computerized dispatching system that would have alerted police and fire dispatchers.

Davis refused to release any documents related to the investigation into the incident. She also would not comment on whether someone had determined if the dispatching delay contributed to Yi's death.

"It would be part of the investigation, and because it did not result in a suspension or termination, I can't give you any information on the investigation," the police spokeswoman said.